Absorbent products having improved packaging efficiency

ABSTRACT

A package comprising an interior space and an exterior surface may have a plurality of disposable absorbent articles disposed within the interior space of the package. Each of the disposable absorbent articles may have a topsheet; a backsheet; a substantially cellulose free absorbent core located between the topsheet and the backsheet. The absorbent products may exhibit an In-Bag Stack Height of less about 80 mm as measured according to an In-Bag Stack Height Test.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of, and claims priority under 35U.S.C. §120 to, U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/893,342, filed onSep. 29, 2010, the entire disclosure of which is hereby incorporated byreference. This application claims priority to Canadian PatentApplication No. 2,678,090 filed on Sep. 29, 2009, which is hereinincorporated by reference in its entirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present disclosure relates generally to absorbent products, and moreparticularly, to packages containing flexible disposable absorbentarticles that exhibit improved packaging efficiency, resulting insmaller, more environmentally friendly products.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Absorbent articles, such as disposable diapers, pant style diapers,training pants, adult incontinence undergarments, absorbent inserts, andthe like absorb and contain body exudates. Such absorbent articles areintended to prevent body exudates from soiling, wetting, or otherwisecontaminating clothing or other articles, such as bedding, that comeinto contact with a wearer of the absorbent articles. Absorbent articlesmay be worn for several hours in a dry state or in a urine (or otherbody exudates) loaded state. Efforts are made to constantly improve thefit and comfort of such absorbent articles both in the wet and drystate.

Many current absorbent articles, particularly those with airfelt (orcellulose) absorbent cores are soft and flexible when first placed in anundergarment, but become more stiff when wet. Such flexible-then stiffcharacteristics are seen in absorbent articles with other types of coresas well. Additionally, such airfelt (or cellulose) absorbent articlesare typically bulky. Overall, traditional absorbent articles thatutilize airfelt (or cellulose) are bulky and somewhat uncomfortable towear.

Moreover, such airfelt (or cellulose) absorbent articles are inefficientto ship as the large amount of airspace in such articles (for example,between the cellulose fibers) translates into fewer absorbent articlesper package and fewer packages per box. While product compression mayincrease packing efficiency of airfelt (or cellulose) absorbentarticles, over compression reduces the absorbency effectiveness of suchabsorbent articles. Additionally, over compression can reduce aestheticappeal of such absorbent articles by making the product stiff anduncomfortable to wear, or by reducing the apparent softness ofindividual components of the absorbent article, such as the absorbentcore. Quite often, when absorbent pads containing cellulose arecompressed to achieve a thin form, hard spots develop within the pads,thereby resulting in a stiffer pad and a lack of uniformity in theabsorbent material.

Due to the high volume/weight ratio of traditional airfelt absorbentarticles, most often shipping and packing of such articles is limited byvolume instead of weight. In other words, a maximum container or vehiclevolume is reached before a maximum container or vehicle weight capacityis reached when packing and/or shipping the traditional airfeltabsorbent articles. This results in a shipping inefficiency due to thefact that the maximum weight bearing capacity of the container orvehicle is not being fully utilized. Essentially, shipping capacity islost due to the amount of air within the absorbent articles that arebeing shipped.

Improvements have been made to absorbent articles, such as disposablediapers, by including an absorbent polymer material (sometimes known assuperabsorbent polymers), such as an absorbent particulate polymermaterial. Absorbent particulate polymer material absorbs liquid andswells and may be particularly effective when the absorbent particulatepolymer is disposed in a particular pattern, arrangement, or matrix thatoptimizes absorbency, fit and/or comfort. Combinations of airfelt coresand absorbent polymer materials produce diapers that are thinner, moreflexible, and more absorbent than previous diapers. This type of diaperconstruction is now prevalent and has been in use for some time.However, these diapers are still viewed to some extent as being bulky,stiff when wet, and inefficient to ship to various store locations.

It is therefore desirable to have an even thinner, less bulky diaperthat is more comfortable to use, remains flexible when wet, and morecost effective to ship to various store locations. One option to reducebulk is to reduce or eliminate airfelt from the absorbent core. Thedifficulty with this approach is that it would also necessitate theabsorbent particulate polymer material remaining fixed in its intendedlocation within the absorbent article without the airfelt core to helpimmobilize the material, regardless of whether the absorbent article isdry or wet. Several recent publications have disclosed diapers withreduced or eliminated airfelt cores combined with immobilized absorbentparticulate polymer materials. For example, an absorbent article havinga substantially airfelt free absorbent core is disclosed in U.S. PatentPublication No. 2008/0312617.

While the aforementioned application discloses an absorbent core for anabsorbent article having a substantially airfelt free absorbent core, aneed still exists for a mechanism to avoid hard, stiff spots in thearticle upon compressing to fit in a package. There further exists aneed for a mechanism to fully optimize product delivery and shipping forsuch articles (optimization from the point of view of more articles perunit volume and less packaging per number of articles packed). Thesetypes of shipping efficiencies reduce the environmental impact ofshipping such articles by reducing the number of pallets and the numberof trucks needed to ship the articles to various store locations andwarehouses.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In one embodiment, an absorbent product includes a package having aninterior space and an exterior surface; and a plurality of disposableabsorbent articles disposed within the interior space of the package.Each of the disposable absorbent articles has a topsheet; a backsheet; asubstantially cellulose free absorbent core located between the topsheetand the backsheet; a first waist region; a second waist region; a crotchregion extending longitudinally between the first and second waistregions; and a fastening member extending laterally outward from thesecond waist region and adapted to releasably connect with a landingzone located in the first waist region. The absorbent product exhibitsan In-Bag Stack Height of less about 80 mm as measured according to anIn-Bag Stack Height Test.

In another embodiment, an absorbent product includes a package having aninterior space and an exterior surface; and a plurality of disposableabsorbent articles disposed within the interior space of the package.Each of the disposable absorbent articles has a topsheet; a backsheet; asubstantially cellulose free absorbent core located between the topsheetand the backsheet; a first waist region; a second waist region; a crotchregion extending longitudinally between the first and second waistregions; and a fastening member extending laterally outward from thesecond waist region and adapted to releasably connect with a landingzone located in the first waist region. The absorbent product exhibits acalculated Bag Utilization Factor of less than about 0.030 m²/pad/m.

In yet another embodiment, an absorbent product includes a packagehaving an interior space and an exterior surface; and a plurality ofdisposable absorbent articles disposed within the interior space of thepackage. Each of the disposable absorbent articles has a chassisincluding a topsheet; a backsheet; a first waist region; a second waistregion; and a crotch region extending longitudinally between the firstand second waist regions. The absorbent product exhibits an In-Bag StackHeight of less about 80 mm as measured according to an In-Bag StackHeight Test and the disposable absorbent articles exhibit a longitudinalbending stiffness of less than about 355 N/m as measured according to aStiffness Test.

In still yet another embodiment, an absorbent product includes a packagehaving an interior space and an exterior surface; and a plurality ofdisposable absorbent articles disposed within the interior space of thepackage. Each of the disposable absorbent articles has a chassisincluding a topsheet; a backsheet; a substantially cellulose freeabsorbent core located between the topsheet and the backsheet; a firstwaist region; a second waist region; and a crotch region extendinglongitudinally between the first and second waist regions. The absorbentproduct exhibits an In-Bag Stack Height of less about 80 mm as measuredaccording to an In-Bag Stack Height Test.

In still yet another embodiment, an absorbent product includes a packagehaving an interior space and an exterior surface; and a plurality ofdisposable absorbent articles disposed within the interior space of thepackage. Each of the disposable absorbent articles has a chassisincluding a topsheet; a backsheet; a substantially cellulose freeabsorbent core located between the topsheet and the backsheet; a firstwaist region; a second waist region; and a crotch region extendinglongitudinally between the first and second waist regions. The absorbentproduct exhibits a calculated Bag Utilization Factor of less than about0.030 m²/pad/m.

In still yet another embodiment, an absorbent product includes a packagehaving an interior space and an exterior surface; and a plurality ofdisposable absorbent articles disposed within the interior space of thepackage. Each of the disposable absorbent articles has a topsheet; abacksheet; a first waist region; a second waist region; a crotch regionextending longitudinally between the first and second waist regions; anda fastening member extending laterally outward from the second waistregion and adapted to releasably connect with a landing zone located inthe first waist region. The absorbent articles are selected from thegroup consisting of baby and toddler diapers. The absorbent productexhibits an In-Bag Stack Height of less about 80 mm as measuredaccording to an In-Bag Stack Height Test.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

While the specification concludes with claims which particularly pointout and distinctly claim the subject matter that is regarded as theinvention, it is believed the various embodiments will be betterunderstood from the following description taken in conjunction with theaccompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a plan view of an absorbent article having a substantiallyairfelt free absorbent core;

FIG. 2 is a cross sectional view of an absorbent article of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a partial cross sectional view of an absorbent core layer ofthe absorbent article of FIGS. 1 and 2;

FIG. 4 is a partial cross sectional view of an absorbent core inaccordance with another embodiment;

FIG. 5A is side view of a package of absorbent articles in accordancewith one embodiment showing the package width. The outer surface isillustrated as transparent for purposes of clarity;

FIG. 5B is a side view of a package of absorbent articles in accordancewith one embodiment showing the package height. The outer surface isillustrated as transparent for purposes of clarity;

FIG. 5C is a perspective view of a package of absorbent articles inaccordance with one embodiment showing the package depth;

FIG. 6A is a front plan view showing a stiffness test apparatus with anupper fixture assembly and a lower fixture assembly.

FIG. 6B is a front plan view showing the stiffness test apparatus withthe upper fixture assembly engaging a test specimen.

FIG. 6C is a detailed front plan view of the upper fixture assembly;

FIG. 6D is a detailed view of the plunger blade of FIG. 6C;

FIG. 6E is a detailed right side view of the upper fixture assembly;

FIG. 6F is a detailed front plan view of the lower fixture assembly;

FIG. 7A is a side view of an absorbent article that has been bi-folded;and

FIG. 7B is a side view of an absorbent article that has been ti-folded.

The figures herein are not necessarily drawn to scale.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

“Absorbent article” refers to devices that absorb and contain bodyexudates, and, more specifically, refers to devices that are placedagainst or proximity to the body of the wearer to absorb and contain thevarious exudates discharged from the body. Absorbent articles mayinclude diapers, training pants, and adult incontinence undergarments.

“Absorbent core” means a structure typically disposed between a topsheetand backsheet of an absorbent article for absorbing and storing liquidreceived by the absorbent article and may comprise one or moresubstrates, absorbent polymer material disposed on the one or moresubstrates, and a thermoplastic composition on the absorbent particulatepolymer material and at least a portion of the one or more substratesfor immobilizing the absorbent particulate polymer material on the oneor more substrates. In a multilayer absorbent core, the absorbent coremay also include a cover later. The one or more substrates and the coverlayer may comprise a nonwoven. Further, the absorbent core may besubstantially cellulose free. The absorbent core includes the one ormore substrates, the absorbent polymer material, the thermoplasticcomposition, optionally the cover layer and optionally auxiliary glue.

“Absorbent polymer material,” “absorbent gelling material,” “AGM,”“superabsorbent,” and “superabsorbent material” are used hereininterchangeably and refer to substantially water-insoluble polymerparticles that can absorb at least 5 times their weight of an aqueous0.9% saline solution by way of an osmotic mechanism.

“Absorbent particulate polymer material” is used herein to refer to anabsorbent polymer material which is in particulate form so as to beflowable in the dry state.

“Absorbent particulate polymer material area” as used herein refers tothe area of the core wherein the first substrate and second substrateare separated by a multiplicity of superabsorbent particles. A boundaryof the absorbent particulate polymer material area is defined byperimeters of overlapping shapes. There may be some extraneoussuperabsorbent particles outside of the perimeter between the firstsubstrate and second substrate.

“Acquisition system” means a structure serving as a temporary reservoirfor body fluids until the absorbent core can absorb the fluids. Theacquisition system may be in direct contact with the absorbent core andresides between topsheet and the backsheet. The acquisition system maycomprise a single layer or multiple layers, such as an upper acquisitionlayer facing towards the wearer's skin and a lower acquisition layerfacing the garment of the wearer. The acquisition system may function toreceive a surge of liquid, such as a gush of urine.

“Airfelt,” or “Cellulose” are used interchangeably herein and refer tocomminuted wood pulp, which is a form of cellulosic fiber.

“Disposable” is used in its ordinary sense to mean an article that isdisposed or discarded after a limited number of usage events overvarying lengths of time, for example, less than about 20 events, lessthan about 10 events, less than about 5 events, or less than about 2events.

“Diaper” refers to an absorbent article generally worn by infants andincontinent persons about the lower torso so as to encircle the waistand legs of the wearer and that is specifically adapted to receive andcontain urinary and fecal waste. As used herein, term “diaper” alsoincludes “pants” which is defined below.

“Fiber” and “filament” are used interchangeably.

A “nonwoven” is a manufactured sheet, web or batt of directionally orrandomly orientated fibers, bonded by friction, and/or cohesion and/oradhesion, excluding paper and products which are woven, knitted, tufted,stitch-bonded incorporating binding yarns or filaments, or felted bywet-milling, whether or not additionally needled. The fibers may be ofnatural or man-made origin and may be staple or continuous filaments orbe formed in situ. Commercially available fibers have diameters rangingfrom less than about 0.001 mm to more than about 0.2 mm and they come inseveral different forms: short fibers (known as staple, or chopped),continuous single fibers (filaments or monofilaments), untwisted bundlesof continuous filaments (tow), and twisted bundles of continuousfilaments (yarn). Nonwoven fabrics can be formed by many processes suchas meltblowing, spunbonding, solvent spinning, electrospinning, andcarding. The basis weight of nonwoven fabrics is usually expressed ingrams per square meter (gsm).

“Infant” diaper refers to an absorbent article generally intended forbabies that are from about 0 to 6 months old. Within this group ofdiapers, 4 sizes are common; premature infants (up to about 6 lbs),newborn infants (up to about 10 lbs), size 1 infants (generally fromabout 8 to 14 lbs), and size 2 infants (generally from about 12 to 18lbs). It is common for design features of this type of diaper to focuson benefits such as softness and/or gentleness to skin.

“Baby” diaper refers to an absorbent article generally intended forbabies that are from about 6 to 12 months old. Within this group ofdiapers, 5 sizes are common; size 3 (from about 16 to 28 lbs), size 4(from about 22 to 37 lbs), size 5 (greater than about 27 lbs), size 6(greater than about 35 lbs), and size 7 (greater than about 41 lbs). Itis common for design features of this type of diaper to focus onbenefits such as fit and stretch, thereby allowing the baby moreflexibility in crawling or walking.

“Toddler” diapers refers to an absorbent article generally intended forbabies that are older than about 12 months, and may be in life stagewhere they are learning to use a toilet facility. Within this group,there are 3 common sizes; size 4 (from about 16 to 34 lbs), size 5 (fromabout 30 to 40 lbs), and size 6 (greater than about 37 lbs). It iscommon for design features of this type of diaper to focus on benefitssuch as fit and ease of placement/removal, thereby allowing the babymore convenience as they are trained on toilet facility usage. Thesediapers may be designed as pants or training pants, as defined below, ormay simply be larger size diapers. The overlapping weight ranges for thevarious sizes described above are to accommodate the various size andshapes of babies within each stage of development.

“Pant” or “training pant,” as used herein, refer to disposable garmentshaving a waist opening and leg openings designed for infant or adultwearers. A pant may be placed in position on the wearer by inserting thewearer's legs into the leg openings and sliding the pant into positionabout a wearer's lower torso. A pant may be preformed by any suitabletechnique including, but not limited to, joining together portions ofthe article using refastenable and/or non-refastenable bonds (e.g.,seam, weld, adhesive, cohesive bond, fastener, etc.). A pant may bepreformed anywhere along the circumference of the article (e.g., sidefastened, front waist fastened). While the terms “pant” or “pants” areused herein, pants are also commonly referred to as “closed diapers,”“prefastened diapers,” “pull-on diapers,” “training pants,” and“diaperpants.” Suitable pants are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,246,433,issued to Hasse, et al. on Sep. 21, 1993; U.S. Pat. No. 5,569,234,issued to Buell et al. on Oct. 29, 1996; U.S. Pat. No. 6,120,487, issuedto Ashton on Sep. 19, 2000; U.S. Pat. No. 6,120,489, issued to Johnsonet al. on Sep. 19, 2000; U.S. Pat. No. 4,940,464, issued to Van Gompelet al. on Jul. 10, 1990; U.S. Pat. No. 5,092,861, issued to Nomura etal. on Mar. 3, 1992; U.S. Patent Publication No. 2003/0233082 A1,entitled “Highly Flexible And Low Deformation Fastening Device”, filedon Jun. 13, 2002; U.S. Pat. No. 5,897,545, issued to Kline et al. onApr. 27, 1999; U.S. Pat. No. 5,957,908, issued to Kline et al on Sep.28, 1999.

“Substantially cellulose free” or “substantially airfelt free” is usedherein to describe an article, such as an absorbent core, that containsless than 10% by weight cellulosic fibers, less than 5% cellulosicfibers, less than 1% cellulosic fibers, no cellulosic fibers, or no morethan an immaterial amount of cellulosic fibers. An immaterial amount ofcellulosic material would not materially affect the thinness,flexibility, or absorbency of an absorbent core. For example, the % byweight cellulose fiber for an absorbent core is calculated based uponusing the total weight of absorbent particulate polymer material andcellulose fiber found in the absorbent core.

“Substantially continuously distributed” as used herein indicates thatwithin the absorbent particulate polymer material area, the firstsubstrate and second substrate are separated by a multiplicity ofsuperabsorbent particles. It is recognized that there may be minorincidental contact areas between the first substrate and secondsubstrate within the absorbent particulate polymer material area.Incidental contact areas between the first substrate and secondsubstrate may be intentional or unintentional (e.g. manufacturingartifacts) but do not form geometries such as pillows, pockets, tubes,quilted patterns and the like.

“Thermoplastic adhesive material” as used herein is understood tocomprise a polymer composition from which fibers are formed and appliedto the superabsorbent material with the intent to immobilize thesuperabsorbent material in both the dry and wet state. The thermoplasticadhesive material of the present invention forms a fibrous network ovathe superabsorbent material.

“Thickness” and “caliper” are used herein interchangeably.

“In-Bag Compression” as used herein is one minus the height of a stackof 10 diaper pads in millimeters, measured while under compressionwithin a ply-bag (In-Bag Stack height), divided by the height of a stackof 10 diaper pads of the same type before compression, multiplied by100; i.e., (1—in-Bag Stack Height/stack height before compression)×100,reported as a percentage.

An absorbent article having a substantially airfelt free absorbent coreis disclosed in U.S. Patent Publication No. 2008/0312617, owned by TheProcter and Gamble Company. An absorbent article having a substantiallyairfelt free absorbent core, such as a diaper, is shown in FIG. 1. Thediaper 10 is shown in its flat out, uncontracted state (i.e., withoutelastic induced contraction) and portions of the diaper 10 are cut awayto more clearly show the underlying structure of the diaper 10. Aportion of the diaper 10 that contacts a wearer is facing the viewer inFIG. 1. The diaper 10 generally may comprise a chassis 12 and anabsorbent core 14 disposed in the chassis.

The chassis 12 of the diaper 10 in FIG. 1 may comprise the main body ofthe diaper 10. The chassis 12 may comprise an outer covering 16including a topsheet 18, which may be liquid pervious, and/or abacksheet 20, which may be liquid impervious. The absorbent core 14 maybe encased between the topsheet 18 and the backsheet 20. The chassis 12may also include side panels 22, elasticized leg cuffs 24, and anelastic waist feature 26.

The leg cuffs 24 and the elastic waist feature 26 may each typicallycomprise elastic members 28. One end portion of the diaper 10 may beconfigured as a first waist region 30 of the diaper 10. An opposite endportion of the diaper 10 may be configured as a second waist region 32of the diaper 10. An intermediate portion of the diaper 10 may beconfigured as a crotch region 34, which extends longitudinally betweenthe first and second waist regions 30 and 32. The waist regions 30 and32 may include elastic elements such that they gather about the waist ofthe wearer to provide improved fit and containment (elastic waistfeature 26). The crotch region 34 is that portion of the diaper 10which, when the diaper 10 is worn, is generally positioned between thewearer's legs.

The diaper 10 is depicted in FIG. 1 with its longitudinal axis 36 andits transverse axis 38. A periphery 40 of the diaper 10 is defined bythe outer edges of the diaper 10 in which the longitudinal edges 42 rungenerally parallel to the longitudinal axis 36 of the diaper 10 and theend edges 44 run between the longitudinal edges 42 generally parallel tothe transverse axis 38 of the diaper 10. The chassis 12 may alsocomprise a fastening system, which may include at least one fasteningmember 46 and at least one stored landing zone 48.

The diaper 10 may also include such other features as are known in theart including front and rear ear panels, waist cap features, elasticsand the like to provide better fit, containment and aestheticcharacteristics. Such additional features are well known in the art andare e.g., described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,860,003 and U.S. Pat. No.5,151,092.

In order to keep the diaper 10 in place about the wearer, at least aportion of the first waist region 30 may be attached by the fasteningmembers 46 to at least a portion of the second waist region 32 to formleg opening(s) and an article waist. When fastened, the fastening systemcarries a tensile load around the article waist. The fastening systemmay allow an article user to hold one element of the fastening system,such as the fastening member 46, and connect the first waist region 30to the second waist region 32 in at least two places. This may beachieved through manipulation of bond strengths between the fasteningdevice elements. In one embodiment, fastening member 46 may include tapetab fasteners, hook and loop fasteners, mushroom and loop fasteners,snaps, pins, belts and the like, and combinations thereof. Typically,fastening member 46 is configured to be refastenable or re-closable. Insome embodiments, fastening member 46 may be adapted to engage orotherwise join with a fastening element, for example, the outer covering16. In other embodiments, the fastening element may be a fastenerlanding zone 48. Fastener landing zone 48 may be a piece of loopmaterial located on the outer covering 16 in the front waist region 30and is adapted to engage a hook-type fastening member 46. In alternativeembodiments, the landing zone 48 may be a film adapted to engage with atape tab fastening member 46.

The diaper 10 may be provided with a re-closable fastening system or mayalternatively be provided in the form of a pant-type diaper. When theabsorbent article is a diaper, it may comprise a re-closable fasteningsystem joined to the chassis for securing the diaper to a wearer. Whenthe absorbent article is a pant-type diaper, the article may comprise atleast two side panels joined to the chassis and to each other to form apant. The fastening system and any component thereof may include anymaterial suitable for such a use, including but not limited to plastics,films, foams, nonwoven, woven, paper, laminates, fiber reinforcedplastics and the like, or combinations thereof. The materials making upthe fastening device may be flexible. The flexibility may allow thefastening system to conform to the shape of the body and thus, reducethe likelihood that the fastening system will irritate or injure thewearer's skin.

For unitary absorbent articles, the chassis 12 and absorbent core 14 mayform the main structure of the diaper 10 with other features added toform the composite diaper structure. While the topsheet 18, thebacksheet 20, and the absorbent core 14 may be assembled in a variety ofwell-known configurations, some diaper configurations are describedgenerally in U.S. Pat. No. 5,554,145 entitled “Absorbent Article WithMultiple Zone Structural Elastic-Like Film Web Extensible Waist Feature”issued to Roe et al. on Sep. 10, 1996; U.S. Pat. No. 5,569,234 entitled“Disposable Pull-On Pant” issued to Buell et al. on Oct. 29, 1996; andU.S. Pat. No. 6,004,306 entitled “Absorbent Article WithMulti-Directional Extensible Side Panels” issued to Robles et al. onDec. 21, 1999.

The topsheet 18 in FIG. 1 may be fully or partially elasticized or maybe foreshortened to provide a void space between the topsheet 18 and theabsorbent core 14. Exemplary structures including elasticized orforeshortened topsheets are described in more detail in U.S. Pat. No.5,037,416 entitled “Disposable Absorbent Article Having ElasticallyExtensible Topsheet” issued to Allen et al. on Aug. 6, 1991; and U.S.Pat. No. 5,269,775 entitled “Trisection Topsheets for DisposableAbsorbent Articles and Disposable Absorbent Articles Having SuchTrisection Topsheets” issued to Freeland et al. on Dec. 14, 1993.

The backsheet 26 may be joined with the topsheet 18. The backsheet 20may prevent the exudates absorbed by the absorbent core 14 and containedwithin the diaper 10 from soiling other external articles that maycontact the diaper 10, such as bed sheets and undergarments. Thebacksheet 26 may be substantially impervious to liquids (e.g., urine)and comprise a laminate of a nonwoven and a thin plastic film such as athermoplastic film having a thickness of about 0.012 mm (0.5 mil) toabout 0.051 mm (2.0 mils). Suitable backsheet films include thosemanufactured by Tredegar Industries Inc. of Terre Haute, Ind. and soldunder the trade names X15306, X10962, and X10964. Other suitablebacksheet materials may include breathable materials that permit vaporsto escape from the diaper 10 while still preventing liquid exudates frompassing through the backsheet 10. Exemplary breathable materials mayinclude materials such as woven webs, nonwoven webs, composite materialssuch as film-coated nonwoven webs, and microporous films such asmanufactured by Mitsui Toatsu Co., of Japan under the designation ESPOIRNO® and by EXXON Chemical Co., of Bay City, Tex., under the designationEXXAIRE®. Suitable breathable composite materials comprising polymerblends are available from Clopay Corporation, Cincinnati, Ohio under thename HYTREL® blend P183097. Such breathable composite materials aredescribed in greater detail in PCT Application No. WO 95/16746,published on Jun. 22, 1995 in the name of E.I. DuPont. Other breathablebacksheets including nonwoven webs and apertured formed films aredescribed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,571,096 issued to Dobrin et al. on Nov. 5,1996.

The backsheet may have a water vapor transmission rate (WVTR) of greaterthan about 2000 g/24 h/m², greater than about 3000 g/24 h/m², greaterthan about 5000 g/24 h/m², greater than about 6000 g/24 h/m², greaterthan about 7000 g/24 h/m², greater than about 8000 g/24 h/m², greaterthan about 9000 g/24 h/m², greater than about 10000 g/24 h/m², greaterthan about 11000 g/24 h/m², greater than about 12000 g/24 h/m², greaterthan about 15000 g/24 h/m², measured according to WSP 70.5 (08) at37.8.° C. and 60% Relative Humidity.

FIG. 2 shows a cross section of the diaper 10 of FIG. 1 taken along thesectional line 2-2 of FIG. 1. Starting from the wearer facing side, thediaper 10 may comprise the topsheet 18, the components of the absorbentcore 14, and the backsheet 20. The diaper 10 may also comprise anacquisition system 50 disposed between the liquid permeable topsheet 18and the backsheet 20. In one embodiment, the diaper 10 may comprise anacquisition system 50 disposed between the liquid permeable topsheet 18and a wearer facing side of the absorbent core 14. The acquisitionsystem 50 may be in direct contact with the absorbent core 14. Theacquisition system 50 may comprise a single layer or multiple layers,such as an upper acquisition layer 52 facing towards the wearer's skinand a lower acquisition 54 layer facing the garment of the wearer. Theacquisition system 50 may function to receive a surge of liquid, such asa gush of urine. In other words, the acquisition system 50 may serve asa temporary reservoir for liquid until the absorbent core 14 can absorbthe liquid.

The lower acquisition layer 54 may have a high fluid uptake capability.Fluid uptake is measured in grams of absorbed fluid per gram ofabsorbent material and is expressed by the value of “maximum uptake.” Ahigh fluid uptake corresponds therefore to a high capacity of thematerial and is beneficial, because it ensures the complete acquisitionof fluids to be absorbed by an acquisition material. The loweracquisition layer 54 may have a maximum uptake of about 10 g/g.

A relevant attribute of the upper acquisition layer 54 is its MedianDesorption Pressure, MDP. The MDP is a measure of the capillary pressurethat is required to dewater the lower acquisition layer 54 to about 50%of its capacity at 0 cm capillary suction height under an appliedmechanical pressure of 0.3 psi. Generally, a relatively lower MDP may beuseful. The lower MDP may allow the lower acquisition layer 54 to moreefficiently drain the upper acquisition material. The ability of thelower acquisition layer 54 to move liquid vertically via capillaryforces will be directly impacted by gravity and the opposing capillaryforces associated with desorption of the upper acquisition layer.Minimizing these capillary forces may positively impact the performanceof the lower acquisition layer 54. However, the lower acquisition layer54 may also have adequate capillary absorption suction in order to drainthe layers above (upper acquisition layer 52 and topsheet 18, inparticular) and to temporarily hold liquid until the liquid can bepartitioned away by the absorbent core components. Therefore, the loweracquisition layer 54 may have a minimum MDP of greater than 5 cm.Further, the lower acquisition layer 54 has an MDP value of less thanabout 20.5 cm H₂O, or less than about 19 cm H₂O, or less than about 18cm H₂O to provide for fast acquisition.

In one embodiment, the absorbent core 14 as shown in FIGS. 1, 2 and 4generally is disposed between the topsheet 18 and the backsheet 20 andcomprises two layers, a first absorbent layer 60 and a second absorbentlayer 62. As best shown in FIG. 3, the first absorbent layer 60 of theabsorbent core 14 comprises a substrate 64, an absorbent particulatepolymer material 66 on the substrate 64, and a thermoplastic composition68 on the absorbent particulate polymer material 66 and at leastportions of the first substrate 64 as an adhesive for covering andimmobilizing the absorbent particulate polymer material 66 on the firstsubstrate 64. The first absorbent layer 60 of the absorbent core 14 mayalso include a cover layer (not shown) on the thermoplastic composition68.

Likewise, as best illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 4, the second absorbentlayer 62 of the absorbent core 14 may also include a substrate 72, anabsorbent particulate polymer material 74 on the second substrate 72,and a thermoplastic composition 76 on the absorbent particulate polymermaterial 74 and at least a portion of the second substrate 72 forimmobilizing the absorbent particulate polymer material 74 on the secondsubstrate 72. Although not illustrated, the second absorbent layer 62may also include a cover layer.

The substrate 64 of the first absorbent layer 60 may be referred to as adusting layer and has a first surface 78 (FIG. 3) which faces thebacksheet 20 of the diaper 10 and a second surface 80 which faces theabsorbent particulate polymer material 66. Likewise, the substrate 72 ofthe second absorbent layer 62 may be referred to as a core cover and hasa first surface facing the topsheet 18 of the diaper 10 and a secondsurface facing the absorbent particulate polymer material 74. The firstand second substrates 64 and 72 may be adhered to one another withadhesive about the periphery to form an envelope about the absorbentparticulate polymer materials 66 and 74 to hold the absorbentparticulate polymer material 66 and 74 within the absorbent core 14.

The substrates 64 and 72 of the first and second absorbent layers 60 and62 may be a non-woven material. The non-wovens may be porous and mayhave a pore size of about 32 microns.

As illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 4, the absorbent particulate polymermaterial 66 and 74 is deposited on the respective substrates 64 and 72of the first and second absorbent layers 60 and 62 in clusters 90 ofparticles to form a grid pattern comprising land areas 94 and junctionareas 96 between the land areas 94. As defined herein, land areas 94 areareas where the thermoplastic adhesive material does not contact thenonwoven substrate or the auxiliary adhesive directly; junction areas 96are areas where the thermoplastic adhesive material does contact thenonwoven substrate or the auxiliary adhesive directly. The junctionareas 96 in the grid pattern contain little or no absorbent particulatepolymer material 66 and 74. The land areas 94 and junction areas 96 canhave a variety of shapes including, but not limited to, circular, oval,square, rectangular, triangular, any polygon shape, and the like.

The size of the land areas 94 may vary. The width of the land areas 94may range from about 8 mm to about 12 mm. The junction areas 96, on theother hand, may have a width or larger span of less than about 5 mm,less than about 3 mm, less than about 2 mm, less than about 1.5 mm, lessthan about 1 mm, or less than about 0.5 mm.

The junction areas 96 can be disposed in a regular or irregular pattern.In one embodiment, the arrangement of land areas 94 and junction areas96 forms an angle which may be 0 degrees, greater than 0 degrees, or 15to 30 degrees, or from about 5 to about 85 degrees, or from about 10 toabout 60 degrees, or from about 15 to about 30 degrees.

The first and second absorbent layers 60 and 62 may be combined togetherto form the absorbent core 14 such that the layers may be offset suchthat the absorbent polymer material 66 and 74 is substantiallycontinuously distributed across the absorbent polymer area. In a certainembodiment, absorbent polymer material 66 and 74 is substantiallycontinuously distributed across the absorbent polymer material areadespite absorbent polymer material 66 and 74 discontinuously distributedacross the first and second substrates 64 and 72 in clusters 90. In acertain embodiment, the absorbent layers may be offset such that theland areas 94 of the first absorbent layer 60 face the junction areas 96of the second absorbent layer 62 and the land areas of the secondabsorbent layer 62 face the junction areas 96 of the first absorbentlayer 60. When the land areas 94 and junction areas 96 are appropriatelysized and arranged, the resulting combination of absorbent polymermaterial 66 and 74 is a substantially continuous layer of absorbentpolymer material across the absorbent polymer material area of theabsorbent core 14 (i.e. first and second substrates 64 and 72 do notform a plurality of pockets, each containing a cluster 90 of absorbentparticulate polymer material 66 therebetween).

In a certain embodiment, the amount of absorbent polymer material 66 and74 may vary along the length of the core. The amount of absorbentpolymer material 66 and 74 present in the absorbent core 14 may vary,but in certain embodiments, is present in the absorbent core in anamount greater than about 80% by weight of the absorbent core, orgreater than about 85% by weight of the absorbent core, or greater thanabout 90% by weight of the absorbent core, or greater than about 95% byweight of the core. In a particular embodiment, the absorbent core 14comprises first and second substrates 64 and 72, the absorbent polymermaterial 66 and 74, and the thermoplastic composition 68 and 76. In suchan embodiment, the absorbent core 14 is substantially cellulose free.

It has been found that, for most absorbent articles such as diapers, theliquid discharge occurs predominately in the front half of the diaper.The front half of the absorbent core 14 should therefore comprise mostof the absorbent capacity of the core. Thus, according to certainembodiments, the front half of said absorbent core 14 may comprise morethan about 60% of the superabsorbent material, or more than about 65%,70%, 75%, 80%, 85%, or 90% of the superabsorbent material. The fronthalf is defined as the region between the midpoint on the longitudinalaxis 36 and the end edge 44 disposed in the first waist region 30.

In certain embodiments, the absorbent core 14 may further comprise anyabsorbent material that is generally compressible, conformable,non-irritating to the wearer's skin, and capable of absorbing andretaining liquids such as urine and other certain body exudates. In suchembodiments, the absorbent core 14 may comprise a wide variety ofliquid-absorbent materials commonly used in disposable diapers and otherabsorbent articles such as comminuted wood pulp, which is generallyreferred to as airfelt, creped cellulose wadding, melt blown polymers,including co-form, chemically stiffened, modified or cross-linkedcellulosic fibers, tissue, including tissue wraps and tissue laminates,absorbent foams, absorbent sponges, or any other known absorbentmaterial or combinations of materials. The absorbent core 14 may furthercomprise minor amounts (typically less than about 10%) of materials,such as adhesives, waxes, oils and the like.

Exemplary absorbent structures for use as the absorbent assemblies aredescribed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,610,678 (Weisman et al.); U.S. Pat. No.4,834,735 (Alemany et al.); U.S. Pat. No. 4,888,231 (Angstadt); U.S.Pat. No. 5,260,345 (DesMarais et al.); U.S. Pat. No. 5,387,207 (Dyer etal.); U.S. Pat. No. 5,397,316 (LaVon et al.); and U.S. Pat. No.5,625,222 (DesMarais et al.).

In one embodiment, the thermoplastic adhesive material 68 and 76 mayserve to cover and at least partially immobilize the absorbent polymermaterial 66 and 74. In one embodiment, the thermoplastic adhesivematerial 68 and 76 can be disposed essentially uniformly within theabsorbent polymer material 66 and 74, between the polymers. However, ina certain embodiment, the thermoplastic adhesive material 68 and 76 maybe provided as a fibrous layer which is at least partially in contactwith the absorbent polymer material 66 and 74 and partially in contactwith the substrate layers 64 and 72 of the first and second absorbentlayers 60 and 62. FIG. 4 shows such a structure, and in that structure,the absorbent polymer material 66 and 74 is provided as a discontinuouslayer, and a layer of fibrous thermoplastic adhesive material 68 and 76is laid down onto the layer of absorbent polymer material 66 and 74,such that the thermoplastic adhesive material 68 and 76 is in directcontact with the absorbent polymer material 66 and 74, but also indirect contact with the second surfaces 80 and 84 of the substrates 64and 72, where the substrates are not covered by the absorbent polymermaterial 66 and 74. This imparts an essentially three-dimensionalstructure to the fibrous layer of thermoplastic adhesive material 68 and76, which in itself is essentially a two-dimensional structure ofrelatively small thickness, as compared to the dimension in length andwidth directions. In other words, the thermoplastic adhesive material 68and 76 undulates between the absorbent polymer material 68 and 76 andthe second surfaces of the substrates 64 and 72.

Thereby, the thermoplastic adhesive material 68 and 76 may providecavities to cover the absorbent polymer material 66 and 74, and therebyimmobilizes this material. In a further aspect, the thermoplasticadhesive material 68 and 76 bonds to the substrates 64 and 72 and thusaffixes the absorbent polymer material 66 and 74 to the substrates 64and 72. Some thermoplastic adhesive materials will also penetrate intoboth the absorbent polymer material 66 and 74 and the substrates 64 and72, thus providing for further immobilization and affixation. Of course,while the thermoplastic adhesive materials disclosed herein provide amuch improved wet immobilization (i.e., immobilization of absorbentmaterial when the article is wet or at least partially loaded), thesethermoplastic adhesive materials may also provide a very goodimmobilization of absorbent material when the absorbent core 14 is dry.The thermoplastic adhesive material 68 and 76 may also be referred to asa hot melt adhesive.

Without wishing to be bound by theory, it has been found that thosethermoplastic adhesive materials which are most useful for immobilizingthe absorbent polymer material 66 and 74 combine good cohesion and goodadhesion behavior. Good adhesion may promote good contact between thethermoplastic adhesive material 68 and 76 and the absorbent particulatepolymer material 66 and 74 and the substrates 64 and 72. Good cohesionreduces the likelihood that the adhesive breaks, in particular inresponse to external forces, and namely in response to strain. When theabsorbent core 14 absorbs liquid, the absorbent polymer material 66 and74 swells and subjects the thermoplastic adhesive material 68 and 76 toexternal forces. In certain embodiments, the thermoplastic adhesivematerial 68 and 76 may allow for such swelling, without breaking andwithout imparting too many compressive forces, which would restrain theabsorbent polymer material 66 and 74 from swelling.

In accordance with certain embodiments, the thermoplastic adhesivematerial 68 and 76 may comprise, in its entirety, a single thermoplasticpolymer or a blend of thermoplastic polymers, having a softening point,as determined by the ASTM Method D-36-95 “Ring and Ball”, in the rangebetween 50° C. and 300° C., or alternatively the thermoplastic adhesivematerial may be a hot melt adhesive comprising at least onethermoplastic polymer in combination with other diluents such astackifying resins, plasticizers and additives such as antioxidants. Incertain embodiments, the thermoplastic polymer has typically a molecularweight (Mw) of more than 10,000 and a glass transition temperature (Tg)usually below room temperature or −6° C.>Tg<16° C. In certainembodiments, typical concentrations of the polymer in a hot melt are inthe range of about 20 to about 40% by weight. In certain embodiments,thermoplastic polymers may be water insensitive. Exemplary polymers are(styrenic) block copolymers including A-B-A triblock structures, A-Bdiblock structures and (A-B)n radial block copolymer structures whereinthe A blocks are non-elastomeric polymer blocks, typically comprisingpolystyrene, and the B blocks are unsaturated conjugated diene or(partly) hydrogenated versions of such. The B block is typicallyisoprene, butadiene, ethylene/butylene (hydrogenated butadiene),ethylene/propylene (hydrogenated isoprene), and mixtures thereof.

Other suitable thermoplastic polymers that may be employed aremetallocene polyolefins, which are ethylene polymers prepared usingsingle-site or metallocene catalysts. Therein, at least one comonomercan be polymerized with ethylene to make a copolymer, terpolymer orhigher order polymer. Also applicable are amorphous polyolefins oramorphous polyalphaolefins (APAO) which are homopolymers, copolymers orterpolymers of C2 to C8 alpha olefins.

In exemplary embodiments, the tackifying resin typically has a Mw below5,000 and a Tg usually above room temperature, typical concentrations ofthe resin in a hot melt are in the range of about 30 to about 60%, andthe plasticizer has a low Mw of typically less than 1,000 and a Tg belowroom temperature, with a typical concentration of about 0 to about 15%.

In certain embodiments, the thermoplastic adhesive material 68 and 76 ispresent in the form of fibers. In some embodiments, the fibers will havean average thickness of from about 1 to about 50 micrometers or fromabout 1 to about 35 micrometers and an average length of from about 5 mmto about 50 mm or from about 5 mm to about 30 mm. To improve theadhesion of the thermoplastic adhesive material 68 and 76 to thesubstrates 64 and 72 or to any other layer, in particular any othernon-woven layer, such layers may be pre-treated with an auxiliaryadhesive.

The absorbent core 14 may also comprise an auxiliary adhesive which isnot illustrated in the figures. The auxiliary adhesive may be depositedon the first and second substrates 64 and 72 of the respective first andsecond absorbent layers 60 and 62 before application of the absorbentparticulate polymer material 66 and 74 for enhancing adhesion of theabsorbent particulate polymer materials 66 and 74 and the thermoplasticadhesive material 68 and 76 to the respective substrates 64 and 72. Theauxiliary glue may also aid in immobilizing the absorbent particulatepolymer material 66 and 74 and may comprise the same thermoplasticadhesive material as described hereinabove or may also comprise otheradhesives including but not limited to sprayable hot melt adhesives,such as H.B. Fuller Co. (St. Paul, Minn.) Product No. HL-1620-B. Theauxiliary glue may be applied to the substrates 64 and 72 by anysuitable means, but according to certain embodiments, may be applied inabout 0.5 to about 1 mm wide slots spaced about 0.5 to about 2 mm apart.

In addition to being thin, flexible, absorbent, and more comfortable towear, these types of absorbent articles have an unexpected benefit.These absorbent articles can be compressed to higher levels duringproduction, packing, and storage than previous airfelt core absorbentarticles without causing an in-use increase in product stiffness due toover compression. The increase in compressibility provides multiplecost-savings benefits; lower shipping costs lower storage/warehousingcosts, reduced packaging costs, reduced shelving/stocking costs, lowerdisposal costs, etc. The increase in compressibility also providessmaller package sizes by reducing the in-bag stack thickness or in-bagstack height for unopened packages of absorbent articles resulting inmore environmentally friendly packaging.

In one embodiment, absorbent products according to the presentdisclosure may have an in-bag stack height of less than about 80 mmaccording to the In-Bag Stack Height Test described herein. In anotherembodiment, absorbent products according to the present disclosure mayhave an in-bag stack height of less than about 78 mm and in anotherembodiment of less than 76 mm according to the In-Bag Stack Height Testdescribed herein. In another embodiment, absorbent products may have anIn-Bag Stack Height of from about 72 mm to about 80 mm and in yetanother embodiment of from about 74 mm to about 78 mm.

Typically, products such as absorbent articles are not soldindividually, but rather are sold in packages containing a plurality ofabsorbent articles. For example, smaller absorbent articles, such asinfant diapers may be sold in packages of thirty or more diapers, whiletoddler training pants may be sold in packages of twelve to eighteentraining pants. In one embodiment, the absorbent articles are packagedin a poly bag. In another embodiment, the package may be a plastic“shrink-wrap” container. As shown in FIG. 5 a, package 100 is a polybag. Package 100 has an interior space 102, an exterior surface 112 anda height, width, and depth dimension. Package 100 may be any shape knownin the art. For example, the package may have a polyhedral shapedefining or forming a polyhedral enclosure. Interior 102 defines aninterior space for containing absorbent articles 104. In one embodiment,the absorbent articles may all be identical to one another.

The absorbent articles 104 are arranged to form a stack 106 withininterior 102. The articles may be stacked in any direction. As usedherein, the term “stack” means an orderly pile. For example, thearticles may be stacked vertically, horizontally, or at any angle insidethe interior of the package. As shown in FIG. 5 a, package 100 has apackage width 108 that is defined as the maximum distance between thetwo highest bulging points along the same compression stack axis 110 ofthe package. Absorbent articles according to the present disclosure canbe bi-folded, as shown in FIG. 7 a, or tri-folded, as shown in FIG. 7 b.Other suitable folding techniques are also contemplated, for example,rolled or double bi-folded. The package 100 may also include a mechanismor means for accessing the interior space, for example, a gusset, a lineof perforations, tabs, adhesive openings or any other means known in theart.

Package 100 may be composed of different materials or may be composed ofsubstantially the same type of material. Package 100 may be composed ofone layer or a laminate. The material can comprise a blown or cast filmin a blend of low density polyethylene and linear low densitypolyethylene, metallocenes, ethylene vinyl acetate, surlyn, polyethyleneterephtalate, biaxially oriented polypropylene, and/or nylon.

The number of absorbent articles placed in a package depends on severalfactors, including for example, folded dimensions, weight and a targetcompressibility range. For instance, Infant diapers (0-6 months) areexpected to have a very soft backsheet feel for consumers when they holdor cuddle with their baby. To prevent a reduction in backsheet softness,these diapers are normally only compressed to between 30-38% within theproduct package, also known as in-bag compression, based on the numberof pads contained in the package.

Baby diapers (6-12 months) and Toddlers (12-24+ months) do not have thesame backsheet softness requirements as mothers are not spending as muchtime holding and cuddling babies within this age group. Within this agegroup, the diaper performance requirements (beyond absorbency) primarilyrelate to stretch, flexibility, and fit, and are associated with babieslearning to crawl and walk. Diaper stiffness is an important productattribute for these diapers, and can be negatively affected byover-compression of product within the package. These diapers arenormally compressed to between about 50 and 57% within the productpackage. Compression of these diapers beyond 57% leads to overall diaperstiffness associated with core over-compression.

Pants and training pants (24+ months) are designed with a focus onchange-ability. Ease of pulling on and off as well as side-openingfeatures are the two most important elements of these diapers.Absorbency and softness are sacrificed in order to encourage pottytraining and to minimize product costs. Therefore, diapers in this rangeare occasionally over-compressed beyond 57% to reduce material andshipping costs. However, backsheet roughness and overall diaperstiffness are seen as product negatives with the pants category.

Surprisingly, we have found that with Baby and Toddler sizesubstantially airfelt free diapers, the target compressibility range canbe increased without adversely affecting key consumer aestheticattributes of the diaper (stiffness/flexibility, softness, etc.). Forexample, absorbent products according to the present disclosure may havean in-bag compression of greater than about 58%. In another embodiment,absorbent products may have an in-bag compression of from about 58% toabout 62%, in another embodiment of from about 58.5% to about 61.5% andin yet another embodiment of from about 59% to about 61%. Further, thein-bag compression for absorbent products having substantially airfeltfree diapers can be increased, while at the same time reducing stiffnessand increasing flexibility. In one embodiment, absorbent productsaccording to the present disclosure may include absorbent articleshaving a longitudinal bending stiffness of less than about 355 N/maccording to the Stiffness Test described herein. In another embodiment,absorbent products may include absorbent articles having a longitudinalbending stiffness of less than about 325 N/m and in another embodimentof less than about 310 N/m. In another embodiment, absorbent productsmay include absorbent articles having a longitudinal bending stiffnessof from about 285 N/m to about 355 N/m and in another embodiment of fromabout 295 N/m to about 345 N/m.

The effects of over compression on diapers with airfelt cores, measuredin terms of stiffness, is illustrated in Table 1 below:

TABLE 1 Longitudinal Bending Stiffness Results for Sample Diapers andPants Longitudinal Bending Stiffness Example (N/m) 1 699 2 530 3 619 4641 5 554 6 470 7 507 Avg. 574 8 414 9 429 10 474 11 494 12 Not recordeddue to instrument malfunction 13 392 14 437 Avg. 440 15 528 16 579 17582 18 427 19 539 20 446 21 553 Avg. 522 22 286 23 325 24 325 25 355 26299 27 285 28 286 Avg. 309

Examples 1-7 are commercially available airfelt training pants sold byKimberly-Clark Corporation under the trademark HUGGIES LEARNING DESIGN(size 3/4T; bag count 23; Lot #b1919719F 19.1).

Examples 8-14 are commercially available airfelt diapers sold by TheProcter & Gamble Company under the trademark PAMPERS CRUISERS (size 5;bag count 28; Lot #9200U01766 05:16)

Examples 15-21 are commercially available airfelt diapers sold by TheProcter & Gamble Company under the trademark PAMPERS CRUISERS (size 5;bag count 25; Lot #9242U01764 11:50). 10 of these diapers were removedfrom the bag and compressed under conditions similar to Examples 22-28,i.e. a height of 40 mm for 2 seconds (intended to simulate thecompression during transfer from the manufacturing line to the baggerfor absorbent articles in accordance with the present disclosure) andthen held at a height of 74 mm for 24 hours (intended to simulate thecompression while in-bag for absorbent articles in accordance with thepresent disclosure). This demonstrates that current airfelt diaperscompressed under conditions similar to Examples 22-28, adversely affectsproduct stiffness.

Examples 22-28 are embodiments of absorbent articles in accordance withthe present disclosure (size 5; bag count 40; Lot #9244U01762X1504).These examples were less stiff and thus more flexible than the othercomparative diapers and pants having airfelt cores from Examples 1-21above.

Stiffness is measured by the following test. FIGS. 6 a and 6 billustrate a Stiffness Test apparatus 300 used to measure the stiffness.The Stiffness Test apparatus 300 includes a constant rate of extensiontensile tester 302 with computer interface (a suitable instrument is aMTS Alliance under Test Works 4 software, as available from MTS SystemsCorp., Eden Prairie, Minn.) fitted with a 25 N load cell. The testapparatus 300 also includes an upper movable test fixture 304 and alower stationary test fixture 306. A plunger blade 308 is used for theupper movable test fixture 304 and base support platforms 310 are usedas the lower stationary test fixture 306. All testing is performed in aconditioned room maintained at 23° C.±2° C. and 50%±2% relativehumidity. As discussed in more detail below, during stiffness testing,the upper fixture assembly 304 moves from a first position, such asshown in FIG. 7 a, to a second position, such as shown in FIG. 7 b, toengage and bend a test specimen 312 disposed on the lower stationarytest fixture 306.

Components of the plunger blade 308 are made of aluminum to maximize theavailable load cell capacity. A shaft 314 is machined to fit the tensiletester and has a locking collar 316 to stabilize the plunger blade 308and maintain alignment orthogonal to base support platforms 310. Theplunger blade defines a length 318L of 300 mm long, a height 318H of 65mm, and thickness 318T of 3.25 mm, and has a material contact edge 320with a continuous radius 322 of 1.625 mm. A bracket 324 fitted with setscrews 326 are used to level the blade and a main set screw 328 tofirmly hold the plunger blade 308 in place after adjustment.

As shown in FIGS. 6 a and 6 b, the lower test fixture 306 is attached tothe tensile tester 302 with a shaft 330 and locking collar 332. The twosupport platforms 310 are movably mounted on a rail 334. The two supportplatforms each have a test surface 336 having a width 336W of 85 mm andlength of 300 mm (perpendicular to the plane of the drawing). The testsurfaces 336 are made of polished stainless steel so as to have aminimal coefficient of friction. Each platform 310 has a digitalposition monitor 338 which reads the individual platform positions (tothe nearest 0.01 mm), and set screws 340 to lock the positions of theplatforms 310 after adjustment. The two platforms form a gap 342 with anadjustable gap width 344. The two platforms 310 are square at the gapedge and the plate edges must be parallel front to back. The surfaces364 must be at the same height so as to be disposed within the sameplane.

A test specimen 312 may include an absorbent article, shown for example,in FIG. 1. The following provides a description of the steps that arefollowed to carry out a Stiffness Test to determine the longitudinalbending stiffness of a test specimen 312. To test the longitudinalbending stiffness of a test specimen, the plunger blade is accuratelyaligned (±0.02 mm) so that the plunger blade is orthogonal to topsurfaces 364 of the support platforms 310 and exhibits no skew relativeto gap edges 366. Using the position monitors 338, the width 344 of thegap 342 is accurately set to 50.00±0.02 mm between the two gap edges 366of the support platforms 310, with the plunger blade 308 accurately(±0.02 mm) centered in the gap 342. The tensile tester is programmed fora compression test. The gage length is set from the material contactedge 320 of the plunger blade 308 to the top surfaces 364 of the supportplatforms 310 to 25 mm. The crosshead is set to lower at 500 mm/min fora distance of 50 mm. The data acquisition rate is set to 200 Hz.

Test specimens are preconditioned at 23° C.±2° C. and 50%±2% relativehumidity for 2 hours prior to testing. During preconditioning thespecimens should remain compressed and sealed within its package untiljust before testing. The specimen is tested in the same foldedconfiguration it was in the package and should not be tested more thanonce.

To test the longitudinal bending stiffness, specimen is placed flat ontothe top surfaces 364 of the support platforms 310 over the gap 342 withthe top side 358 facing upward. The test specimen is placed with thelongitudinal axis 36 parallel to the length dimension of the plungerblade 308, and centered in the lateral 38 and the longitudinal 346directions under the shaft 314 of the plunger blade. The load cell iszeroed and the tensile tester and the data acquisition are started.

The software is programmed to calculate the maximum peak force (N) andstiffness (N/m) from the force (N) versus displacement (m) curves.Stiffness is calculated as the slope of the force/displacement curve forthe linear region of the curve, using a minimum line segment of at least25% of the total peak force to calculate the slope. The stiffness isreported to the nearest 0.1 N/m. At least five samples are measured inthis manner for a given product and the stiffness values are aggregatedto calculate an average and standard deviation.

Consumers generally prefer smaller, more environmentally friendlypackaging for products. As mentioned above, the increase incompressibility provides smaller package sizes and thus reduces theamount of packaging materials, for example, film material that isrequired per package of absorbent articles. One way to compare theamount of packaging materials used for absorbent articles is tocalculate a bag or film utilization factor by measuring the packagewidth, height and depth and calculating a surface area of the packageutilizing the equation: SurfaceArea=(width×height×2)+(width×depth×2)+(height×depth×2). This packagesurface area is then divided by the bag pad count, i.e. the number ofabsorbent articles in the package, to give an area per pad result.However, such a calculation fails to account for differences associatedwith the size of diapers. Thus, one way to compare the bag utilizationfactor for different packages is to normalize for differences in FoldedStack Length of the absorbent articles within the package.

As illustrated in FIG. 5 a, package width 108 is defined as the maximumdistance between the two highest bulging points along the samecompression stack axis 110 of a diaper package. As illustrated in FIG. 5b, package height 120 is defined as the maximum distance between thebottom panel and highest point of the top panel. As illustrated in FIG.5 c, package depth 130 is defined as the maximum distance between thefront and back panels of a diaper package.

Therefore, the Bag Utilization Factor can be determined by the followingequation:

${{Bag}\mspace{14mu}{Utilization}\mspace{14mu}{Factor}\mspace{14mu}( {m^{2}\text{/}{pad}\text{/}m} )} = {\frac{{Surface}\mspace{14mu}{Area}\mspace{14mu}{of}\mspace{14mu}{Package}\mspace{14mu}{( {cm}^{2} )/{Bag}}\mspace{14mu}{Count}}{{Folded}\mspace{14mu}{Stack}\mspace{14mu}{Length}\mspace{14mu}({cm})} \div 100}$Using the averages of Examples 1-5 from Table 2 below, the BagUtilization Factor is determined as follows:

${{Bag}\mspace{14mu}{Utilization}\mspace{14mu}{Factor}\mspace{14mu}( {m^{2}\text{/}{pad}\text{/}m} )} = {{( {16.3\mspace{14mu}{cm} \times 40.1\mspace{14mu}{cm} \times 2} ){{\frac{{+ ( {16.3\mspace{14mu}{cm} \times 11.0\mspace{14mu}{cm} \times 2} )} + ( {40.1\mspace{14mu}{cm} \times 11.0\mspace{14mu}{cm} \times 2} )}{20.6\mspace{14mu}{cm}}/36} \div 100}} = {{3.436/100} = {0.034\mspace{14mu} m^{2}\text{/}{pad}\text{/}m}}}$

In one embodiment, absorbent products according to the presentdisclosure may have a bag utilization factor of less than 0.031m²/pad/m. In another embodiment, absorbent products may have a bagutilization factor of less than about 0.030 m²/pad/m and in anotherembodiment of less than about 0.029 m²/pad/m. In another embodiment,absorbent products may have a bag utilization factor of from about 0.027m²/pad/m to about 0.030 m²/pad/m.

Examples

The following Examples provide a comparison between diapers that arecommercially available in the United States to diapers having optimizedparameters according to the present disclosure. Tables 2-6 provide datafor various diaper packages (folded stack length, in-bag stack height,and bag utilization factor) measured according to the Folded StackLength Test and In-Bag Stack Height Test described in detail below.

TABLE 2 In-Bag Stack Height/Bag Utilization Factor Results for SampleDiaper Packages (Size 3) In- Pad Child Folded Bag Bag Count Wt. StackStack Utilization Height Width Depth Bag Per Range Length Ht FactorExample (mm) (mm) (mm) Count Stack (kg) (mm) (mm) (m²/pad/m)  1. 400 166110 36 18 7-13 210 92 0.0340  2. 401 163 110 36 18 7-13 206 91 0.0344 3. 400 162 109 36 18 7-13 206 90 0.0340  4. 402 162 110 36 18 7-13 20490 0.0346  5. 400 164 109 36 18 7-13 206 91 0.0343 Avg. 206 91 0.034  6.211 284 217 52 26 7-13 210 109 0.0306  7. 216 289 220 52 26 7-13 209 1110.0319  8. 213 281 217 52 26 7-13 208 108 0.0309  9. 213 285 218 52 267-13 210 110 0.0310 10. 208 274 223 52 26 7-13 208 105 0.0304 Avg. 209109 0.031 11. 204 295 102 26 26 7-13 211 113 0.0405 12. 203 293 102 2626 7-13 210 113 0.0403 13. 205 294 101 26 26 7-13 208 113 0.0409 14. 204294 104 26 26 7-13 208 113 0.0413 15. 203 297 103 26 26 7-13 207 1140.0415 Avg. 209 113 0.041 16. 198 327 111 38 38 7-13 200 86 0.0324 17.197 328 111 38 38 7-13 205 86 0.0316 18. 189 327 111 38 38 7-13 196 860.0320 19. 187 329 112 38 38 7-13 196 87 0.0320 20. 194 330 113 38 387-13 204 87 0.0318 21. 193 334 114 38 38 7-13 205 88 0.0320 Avg. 201 870.032 22. 203 229 114 31 31 7-13 205 74 0.0301 23. 202 229 114 31 317-13 208 74 0.0296 24. 204 230 112 31 31 7-13 207 74 0.0298 25. 204 226112 31 31 7-13 205 73 0.0297 26. 204 226 113 31 31 7-13 206 73 0.0297Avg. 206 74 0.030 27. 393 203 113 52 26 7-13 206 78 0.0275 28. 396 209111 52 26 7-13 206 80 0.0280 29. 392 207 110 52 26 7-13 204 80 0.027730. 391 206 112 52 26 7-13 202 79 0.0281 31. 392 207 110 52 26 7-13 20480 0.0277 Avg. 204 79 0.028

Examples 1-5 are commercially available airfelt diapers sold byKimberly-Clark Corporation under the trademark HUGGIES SNUG & DRY (size3; bag count 36; Lot #'s UT915306F 10:09; UT915306F 09:50; UT916806B06:17; UT915306F 09:50; and UT9168068 06:17, respectively).

Examples 6-10 are commercially available airfelt diapers sold byKimberly-Clark Corporation under the trademark HUGGIES LITTLE MOVERS(size 3; bag count 52; Lot #'s UT815001B 22:24; BI913412B 00:20;BI913412B 00:20; BI913412B 00:19; and BI913412B 00:20, respectively).

Examples 11-15 are commercially available airfelt diapers sold byKimberly-Clark Corporation under the trademark HUGGIES PURE & NATURAL(size 3; bag count 26; Lot # BI914617B 23:58—Ex. 11 and 12; BI920317B06:00—Ex. 13; and BI920317B 01:19—Ex. 14 and 15).

Examples 16-21 are commercially available airfelt diapers sold by TheProcter & Gamble Company under the trademark PAMPERS CRUISERS (size 3;bag count 76; Lot #'s 9154U01142 02:35 15837—Ex. 16 and 17; 9192U0114209:41 38287—Ex. 18 and 19; and 9095U01142 11:03 25875—Ex. 20 and 21).

Examples 22-26 are embodiments of absorbent products in accordance withthe present disclosure (size 3; bag count 31; Lot #'s 9242U01762X1028;9242U01762X1009—Ex. 23-26).

Examples 27-31 are embodiments of absorbent products in accordance withthe present disclosure (size 3; bag count 52; Lot #'s9242U01762X1251—Ex. 27 and 28 and 9242U011762X1317—Ex. 29-31).

TABLE 3 In-Bag Stack Height/Bag Utilization Factor Results for SampleDiaper Packages (Size 4) In- Pad Child Folded Bag Bag Count Wt. StackStack Utilization Height Width Depth Bag Per Range Length Ht FactorExample (mm) (mm) (mm) Count Stack (kg) (mm) (mm) (m²/pad/m) 32. 230 262116 31 31 10-17 228 85 0.0332 33. 219 254 118 31 31 10-17 226 82 0.031834. 222 267 116 31 31 10-17 222 86 0.0337 35. 230 262 118 31 31 10-17227 85 0.0336 36. 221 261 116 31 31 10-17 219 84 0.0335 Avg. 224 840.033 37. 212 340 220 32 32 10-17 218 106 0.0555 38. 220 336 222 32 3210-17 223 105 0.0553 39. 215 339 224 32 32 10-17 221 106 0.0557 40. 209337 218 32 32 10-17 215 105 0.0551 41. 211 337 219 32 32 10-17 215 1050.0556 Avg. 218 106 0.055 42. 218 255 109 23 23 10-17 226 111 0.0412 43.217 258 108 23 23 10-17 227 112 0.0411 44. 216 255 109 23 23 10-17 222111 0.0417 45. 217 257 108 23 23 10-17 226 112 0.0411 46. 216 254 108 2323 10-17 226 110 0.0406 Avg. 225 111 0.041 47. 218 233 110 27 27 10-17225 86 0.0331 48. 218 233 111 27 27 10-17 222 86 0.0337 49. 218 232 11127 27 10-17 225 86 0.0337 50. 217 239 111 27 27 10-17 219 89 0.0347 51.219 233 114 27 27 10-17 221 86 0.0344 Avg. 222 87 0.034 52. 217 211 11227 27 10-17 220 78 0.0316 53. 216 208 112 27 27 10-17 216 77 0.0317 54.216 210 112 27 27 10-17 220 78 0.0313 55. 216 209 112 27 27 10-17 220 770.0312 56. 212 212 112 27 27 10-17 219 79 0.0313 Avg. 219 78 0.031 57.212 344 121 46 46 10-17 221 75 0.0276 58. 213 344 117 46 46 10-17 220 750.0274 59. 213 345 120 46 46 10-17 220 75 0.0278 60. 214 349 118 46 4610-17 221 76 0.0278 61. 211 348 119 46 46 10-17 222 76 0.0274 Avg. 22175 0.028

Examples 32-36 are commercially available airfelt diapers sold byKimberly-Clark Corporation under the trademark HUGGIES SNUG & DRY (size4; bag count 31; Lot #'s PA913908B 20:06; BI917716B 22:41; WP 920310 F;PA913908B 20:05; and WP 920310 F, respectively).

Examples 37-41 are commercially available airfelt diapers sold byKimberly-Clark Corporation under the trademark HUGGIES LITTLE MOVERS(size 4; bag count 64; Lot #'s UT916502B 2049 #9917; BI916812X 10:1582616; BI919112X 11:16 331403; UT917102F 10:01 4548; and UT917102F09:57, respectively).

Examples 42-46 are commercially available airfelt diapers sold byKimberly-Clark Corporation under the trademark HUGGIES PURE & NATURAL(size 4; bag count 23; Lot #'s BI911212B 21:24—Ex. 42-44 and BI911212B21:18—Ex. 45 and 46).

Examples 47-51 are commercially available airfelt diapers sold by TheProcter & Gamble Company under the trademark PAMPERS CRUISERS (size 4;bag count 27; Lot #'s 9200 UO1129 21:15—Ex. 47-49; 9194UO1129 11:46; and9214 UO1754 19:30, respectively).

Examples 52-56 are embodiments of absorbent products in accordance withthe present disclosure (size 4; bag count 27; Lot #'s924762U01762X1755—Ex. 52, 53 and 55; and 924762U01762X1754—Ex. 54 and56).

Examples 57-61 are embodiments of absorbent products in accordance withthe present disclosure (size 4; bag count 46; Lot #9247U01762X10:36).

TABLE 4 In-Bag Stack Height/Bag Utilization Factor Results for SampleDiaper Packages (Size 5) In- Pad Child Folded Bag Bag Count Wt. StackStack Utilization Height Width Depth Bag Per Range Length Ht FactorExample (mm) (mm) (mm) Count Stack (kg) (mm) (mm) (m²/pad/m) 62. 235 304120 35 35 12+ 232 87 0.0335 63. 234 304 121 35 35 12+ 229 87 0.0340 64.234 295 119 35 35 12+ 236 84 0.0320 65. 235 294 118 35 35 12+ 230 840.0327 66. 234 302 122 35 35 12+ 232 86 0.0335 67. 235 305 121 35 35 12+233 87 0.0336 Avg. 232 86 0.033 68. 224 256 111 23 23 12+ 230 111 0.041869. 230 258 112 23 23 12+ 231 112 0.0429 70. 221 254 111 23 23 12+ 223110 0.0424 71. 223 255 111 23 23 12+ 223 111 0.0429 72. 224 253 111 2323 12+ 226 110 0.0422 Avg. 227 111 0.042 73. 215 261 104 20 20 12+ 221131 0.0477 74. 217 264 102 20 20 12+ 221 132 0.0483 75. 215 261 102 2020 12+ 224 130 0.0468 76. 222 269 95 20 20 12+ 227 134 0.0469 77. 214262 104 20 20 12+ 223 131 0.0473 Avg. 223 132 0.047 78. 212 268 117 2828 12+ 220 96 0.0367 79. 211 269 118 28 28 12+ 218 96 0.0372 80. 210 267118 28 28 12+ 220 95 0.0365 81. 212 270 117 28 28 12+ 219 96 0.0371 82.212 271 120 28 28 12+ 221 97 0.0373 83. 211 271 121 28 28 12+ 220 970.0375 Avg. 220 96 0.037 84. 214 302 120 40 40 12+ 223 76 0.0284 85. 213304 118 40 40 12+ 226 76 0.0278 86. 216 304 120 40 40 12+ 225 76 0.028587. 216 302 119 40 40 12+ 225 76 0.0282 88. 216 304 118 40 40 12+ 222 760.0286 Avg. 224 76 0.028

Examples 62-67 are commercially available airfelt diapers sold byKimberly-Clark Corporation under the trademark HUGGIES SNUG & DRY (size5; bag count 35; Lot #'s PA919002B 04:11—Ex. 62 and 63; BI907015X 02:0316118—Ex. 64 and 65; and PA915502F 17:00—Ex. 66 and 67).

Examples 68-72 are commercially available airfelt diapers sold byKimberly-Clark Corporation under the trademark HUGGIES LITTLE MOVERS(size 5; bag count 23; Lot #'s PA914807X 17:15; PA914907X 02:04; andPA917707B 04:55—Ex. 70-72, respectively).

Examples 73-77 are commercially available airfelt diapers sold byKimberly-Clark Corporation under the trademark HUGGIES PURE & NATURAL(size 5; bag count 20; Lot #'s UT918102F 16:33—Ex. 73-75; UT907802F14:11; and UT918102F 14:45, respectively).

Examples 78-83 are commercially available airfelt diapers sold by TheProcter & Gamble Company under the trademark PAMPERS CRUISERS (size 5;bag count 56; Lot #'s 9208UO1130 08:07 02501—Ex. 78-81 and 9292UO113021:12 46676—Ex. 82 and 83).

Examples 84-88 are embodiments of absorbent products in accordance withthe present disclosure (size 5; bag count 40; Lot #9244UO1762X1504).

TABLE 5 In-Bag Stack Height/Bag Utilization Factor Results for SampleDiaper Packages (Size 6) In- Pad Child Folded Bag Bag Count Wt. StackStack Utilization Height Width Depth Bag Per Range Length Ht FactorExample (mm) (mm) (mm) Count Stack (kg) (mm) (mm) (m²/pad/m) 89. 233 253218 40 20 16+ 233 127 0.0354 90. 241 252 216 40 20 16+ 235 126 0.035691. 227 259 223 40 20 16+ 233 130 0.0359 92. 232 256 212 40 20 16+ 239128 0.0341 93. 227 261 217 40 20 16+ 237 131 0.0348 Avg. 235 128 0.03594. 237 219 108 20 20 16+ 238 110 0.0425 95. 235 220 108 20 20 16+ 240110 0.0420 96. 233 220 110 20 20 16+ 235 110 0.0430 97. 237 217 111 2020 16+ 238 109 0.0428 98. 232 219 111 20 20 16+ 237 110 0.0426 Avg. 238110 0.043 99. 188 228 115 20 20 16+ 235 114 0.0386 100.  189 232 113 2020 16+ 233 116 0.0392 101.  192 232 114 20 20 16+ 235 116 0.0395 102. 192 234 116 20 20 16+ 235 117 0.0401 103.  192 231 115 20 20 16+ 235 1160.0396 Avg. 235 116 0.039

Examples 89-93 are commercially available airfelt diapers sold byKimberly-Clark Corporation under the trademark HUGGIES SNUG & DRY (size6; bag count 40; Lot #'s PA901405B 03:52; PA901405B 03:54; WP 823109F;PA8142055 15:17; and PA901505F 14:41, respectively).

Examples 94-98 are commercially available airfelt diapers sold byKimberly-Clark Corporation under the trademark HUGGIES LITTLE MOVERS(size 6; bag count 34; Lot #'s PA913107X 11:39; PA913107X 11:37;PA913207X 01:32; PA919007F 10:19; and PA910207X 23:21, respectively).

Examples 99-103 are commercially available airfelt diapers sold by TheProcter & Gamble Company under the trademark PAMPERS CRUISERS (size 6;bag count 20; Lot #'s 9141UO17642235—Ex. 81-84 and 9155UO17641647).

TABLE 6 In-Bag Stack Height/Bag Utilization Factor Results for SampleDiaper Packages (Training Pants) In- Pad Child Folded Bag Bag Count Wt.Stack Stack Utilization Height Width Depth Bag Per Range Length HtFactor Example (mm) (mm) (mm) Count Stack (kg) (mm) (mm) (m²/pad/m) 104.272 249 125 27 27 17-29 274 92 0.0359 105. 277 248 123 27 27 17-29 27592 0.0359 106. 276 258 117 27 27 17-29 274 96 0.0361 107. 275 256 117 2727 17-29 278 95 0.0353 108. 272 246 125 27 27 17-29 272 91 0.0359 Avg.272 93 0.036 109. 294 205 130 21 21  27-57+ 293 98 0.0407 110. 295 206129 21 21  27-57+ 290 98 0.0412 111. 288 209 129 21 21  27-57+ 286 1000.0414 112. 291 205 129 21 21  27-57+ 287 98 0.0410 113. 286 209 130 2121  27-57+ 286 100 0.0413 Avg. 288 98 0.041 114. 266 166 124 15 15 17-29268 111 0.0486 115. 268 169 121 15 15 17-29 268 113 0.0488 116. 269 170122 15 15 17-29 270 113 0.0490 117. 269 169 122 15 15 17-29 268 1130.0492 118. 270 167 122 15 15 17-29 269 111 0.0488 Avg. 269 112 0.049119. 300 205 121 21 21  27-57+ 302 98 0.0387 120. 299 209 121 21 21 27-57+ 298 100 0.0396 121. 291 205 126 21 21  27-57+ 288 98 0.0404 122.296 205 127 21 21  27-57+ 295 98 0.0401 123. 291 207 127 21 21  27-57+293 99 0.0401 Avg. 295 98 0.040 124. 216 279 132 44 44  8-15 211 630.0271 125. 220 279 132 44 44  8-15 215 63 0.0269 126. 219 277 134 44 44 8-15 215 63 0.0269 127. 219 279 134 44 44  8-15 218 63 0.0267 128. 218279 132 44 44  8-15 216 63 0.0266 Avg. 215 63 0.027 129. 232 172 134 2323 15-18 235 75 0.0348 130. 233 176 132 23 23 15-18 235 77 0.0352 131.233 175 132 23 23 15-18 235 76 0.0350 132. 229 175 134 23 23 15-18 23176 0.0355 133. 232 176 129 23 23 15-18 231 77 0.0352 Avg. 233 76 0.035134. 240 156 130 19 19 17-23 240 82 0.0390 135. 241 156 130 19 19 17-23238 82 0.0395 136. 243 156 130 19 19 17-23 240 82 0.0394 137. 238 152133 19 19 17-23 239 80 0.0388 138. 243 153 133 19 19 17-23 235 81 0.0402Avg. 238 81 0.039 139. 209 204 129 26 26  8-15 211 78 0.0350 140. 211205 129 26 26  8-15 208 79 0.0358 141. 213 201 130 26 26  8-15 212 770.0351 142. 213 199 129 26 26  8-15 215 77 0.0342 143. 213 199 130 26 26 8-15 214 77 0.0345 Avg. 212 78 0.035 144. 227 176 131 23 23 15-18 22877 0.0354 145. 227 174 132 23 23 15-18 228 76 0.0353 146. 231 175 131 2323 15-18 229 76 0.0355 147. 230 172 132 23 23 15-18 227 75 0.0355 148.226 178 133 23 23 15-18 230 77 0.0355 Avg. 228 76 0.035 149. 238 158 13019 19 17-23 238 83 0.0394 150. 237 158 131 19 19 17-23 236 83 0.0398151. 238 157 131 19 19 17-23 238 83 0.0394 152. 239 158 132 19 19 17-23238 83 0.0399 153. 240 158 132 19 19 17-23 241 83 0.0395 Avg. 238 830.040 154. 214 196 129 26 26  8-15 219 75 0.0333 155. 215 196 128 26 26 8-15 218 75 0.0334 156. 218 195 128 26 26  8-15 218 75 0.0337 157. 215196 129 26 26  8-15 218 75 0.0336 158. 210 202 126 26 26  8-15 217 780.0334 Avg. 218 76 0.033 159. 230 182 124 23 23 15-18 233 79 0.0347 160.230 182 128 23 23 15-18 232 79 0.0355 161. 231 182 126 23 23 15-18 23179 0.0354 162. 226 170 131 23 23 15-18 233 74 0.0337 163. 230 171 131 2323 15-18 233 74 0.0343 Avg. 232 77 0.035 164. 236 160 130 19 19 17-23237 84 0.0396 165. 235 161 131 19 19 17-23 236 85 0.0400 166. 236 160131 19 19 17-23 238 84 0.0396 167. 235 160 135 19 19 17-23 240 84 0.0399168. 236 163 133 19 19 17-23 239 86 0.0403 Avg. 238 85 0.040 169. 212197 124 26 26  8-15 215 76 0.0311 170. 213 190 123 26 26  8-15 215 730.0322 171. 214 190 122 26 26  8-15 215 73 0.0322 172. 211 194 127 26 26 8-15 215 75 0.0330 173. 211 202 125 26 26  8-15 214 78 0.0339 Avg. 21575 0.033 174. 230 172 131 23 23 15-18 235 75 0.0341 175. 232 173 131 2323 15-18 233 75 0.0348 176. 228 171 131 23 23 15-18 233 74 0.0341 177.226 172 132 23 23 15-18 235 75 0.0338 178. 226 171 131 23 23 15-18 23474 0.0337 Avg. 234 75 0.034 179. 237 160 131 19 19 17-23 239 84 0.0396180. 235 161 131 19 19 17-23 240 85 0.0393 181. 235 161 131 19 19 17-23238 85 0.0397 182. 233 154 132 19 19 17-23 239 81 0.0383 183. 234 154133 19 19 17-23 240 81 0.0384 Avg. 239 83 0.039 184. 219 265 118 26 26 7-15 218 102 0.0406 185. 216 265 120 26 26  7-15 220 102 0.0402 186.219 267 118 26 26  7-15 220 103 0.0405 187. 220 269 120 26 26  7-15 220103 0.0412 188. 219 266 118 26 26  7-15 215 102 0.0413 Avg. 219 1020.041 189. 222 231 122 23 23 14-18 228 100 0.0406 190. 224 229 119 23 2314-18 225 100 0.0407 191. 225 228 117 23 23 14-18 224 99 0.0405 192. 225228 117 23 23 14-18 228 99 0.0398 193. 225 226 116 23 23 14-18 227 980.0395 Avg. 226 99 0.040 194. 218 263 117 26 26  7-15 222 101 0.0394195. 219 265 116 26 26  7-15 224 102 0.0392 196. 215 266 118 26 26  7-15216 102 0.0406 197. 217 267 116 26 26  7-15 220 103 0.0399 198. 218 263117 26 26  7-15 220 101 0.0397 Avg. 220 102 0.040 199. 222 220 122 23 2314-18 224 96 0.0399 200. 225 220 122 23 23 14-18 228 96 0.0396 201. 226224 121 23 23 14-18 225 97 0.0406 202. 228 228 121 23 23 14-18 224 990.0416 203. 233 225 124 23 23 14-18 226 98 0.0420 Avg. 225 97 0.041 204.245 213 119 17 17 17-29 256 125 0.0490 205. 247 212 120 17 17 17-29 255125 0.0496 206. 245 214 118 17 17 17-29 255 126 0.0492 207. 248 212 11917 17 17-29 252 125 0.0501 208. 241 215 119 17 17 17-29 247 126 0.0505Avg. 253 125 0.050 209. 260 171 119 13 13 26-39 265 132 0.0556 210. 258171 121 13 13 26-39 263 132 0.0562 211. 249 170 120 13 13 26-39 252 1310.0565 212. 249 171 120 13 13 26-39 255 132 0.0561 213. 249 171 118 1313 26-39 254 132 0.0558 Avg. 258 131 0.056 214. 248 216 118 17 17 17-29256 127 0.0498 215. 244 214 119 17 17 17-29 253 126 0.0496 216. 250 212118 17 17 17-29 255 125 0.0496 217. 245 213 120 17 17 17-29 247 1250.0510 218. 245 214 121 17 17 17-29 245 126 0.0518 Avg. 251 126 0.050

Examples 104-108 are commercially available airfelt training pants soldby Kimberly-Clark Corporation under the trademark HUGGIES GOOD NITES(girl S-M; bag count 27; Lot #'s PA19915B 23:25—Ex. 104, 105 and 108;PA916113X 17:29—Ex. 106; and PA916113X 17:31—Ex. 107).

Examples 109-113 are commercially available airfelt training pants soldby Kimberly-Clark Corporation under the trademark HUGGIES GOOD NITES(girl L-XL; bag count 21; Lot #'s PA920414F 17:46—Ex. 109 and 110;PA915614B 01:54; PA915414F 10:38; and PA915614B 01:52).

Examples 114-118 are commercially available airfelt training pants soldby Kimberly-Clark Corporation under the trademark HUGGIES GOOD NITES(boy S-M; bag count 15; Lot #'s PA917215F 15:09; PA917915F 16:02;PA917915F 16:04; PA916315F 10:44; and PA917915F 16:04, respectively).

Examples 119-123 are commercially available airfelt training pants soldby Kimberly-Clark Corporation under the trademark HUGGIES GOOD NITES(boy L-XL; bag count 21; Lot #'s PA919613F 14:33—Ex. 119 and 120; andPA920914F 18:05—Ex. 121-123).

Examples 124-128 are commercially available airfelt training pants soldby Kimberly-Clark Corporation under the trademark HUGGIES LEARNINGDESIGN (girl 2T/3T; bag count 44; Lot #'s PA920017F 07:03; PA920910B03:55; PA919917B 06:28; and PA920910B 04:17—Ex. 127 and 128,respectively). These particular examples do not have a substantiallycellulose free absorbent core as defined herein.

Examples 129-133 are commercially available airfelt training pants soldby Kimberly-Clark Corporation under the trademark HUGGIES LEARNINGDESIGN (girl 3T/4T; bag count 23; Lot #'s BI919619B 20:40; BI917919B05:35—Ex. 130-132; and PA917009X 19:14, respectively). These particularexamples do not have a substantially cellulose free absorbent core asdefined herein.

Examples 134-138 are commercially available airfelt training pants soldby Kimberly-Clark Corporation under the trademark HUGGIES LEARNINGDESIGN (girl 4T/5T; bag count 19; Lot # PA921018F 10:48). Theseparticular examples do not have a substantially cellulose free absorbentcore as defined herein.

Examples 139-143 are commercially available airfelt training pants soldby Kimberly-Clark Corporation under the trademark HUGGIES LEARNINGDESIGN (boy 2T/3T; bag count 26; Lot #'s PA922610F08:48—Ex. 139 and 140;PA921210B23:28; PA92120B23:21; and PA92120B23:20). These particularexamples do not have a substantially cellulose free absorbent core asdefined herein.

Examples 144-148 are commercially available airfelt training pants soldby Kimberly-Clark Corporation under the trademark HUGGIES LEARNINGDESIGN (boy 3T/4T; bag count 23; Lot #'s PA92189B02:00—Ex. 144-147 andPA919312B03:07). These particular examples do not have a substantiallycellulose free absorbent core as defined herein.

Examples 149-153 are commercially available airfelt training pants soldby Kimberly-Clark Corporation under the trademark HUGGIES LEARNINGDESIGN (boy 4T/5T; bag count 19; Lot #'s PA920718F 12:39—Ex. 139-142;and PA915818X 03:06). These particular examples do not have asubstantially cellulose free absorbent core as defined herein.

Examples 154-158 are commercially available airfelt training pants soldby Kimberly-Clark Corporation under the trademark HUGGIES COOL ALERT(girl 2T/3T; bag count 26; Lot #'s PA914610X 01:46—Ex. 154-157; andUT911011F 09:25). These particular examples do not have a substantiallycellulose free absorbent core as defined herein.

Examples 159-163 are commercially available airfelt training pants soldby Kimberly-Clark Corporation under the trademark HUGGIES COOL ALERT(girl 3T/4T; bag count 23; Lot #'s UT911812B 23:34—Ex. 159 and 160;UT919412F07:36—Ex. 161; and BI917219B 03:11—Ex. 162 and 163). Theseparticular examples do not have a substantially cellulose free absorbentcore as defined herein.

Examples 164-168 are commercially available airfelt training pants soldby Kimberly-Clark Corporation under the trademark HUGGIES COOL ALERT(girl 4T/5T; bag count 19; Lot #'s UT909610B 23:35—Ex. 164-166; andBI912818F 08:46—Ex. 167 and 168). These particular examples do not havea substantially cellulose free absorbent core as defined herein.

Examples 169-173 are commercially available airfelt training pants soldby Kimberly-Clark Corporation under the trademark HUGGIES COOL ALERT(boy 2T/3T; bag count 26; Lot #'s WP919510F—Ex. 169-172; and PA914810X18:23). These particular examples do not have a substantially cellulosefree absorbent core as defined herein.

Examples 174-178 are commercially available airfelt training pants soldby Kimberly-Clark Corporation under the trademark HUGGIES COOL ALERT(boy 3T/4T; bag count 23; Lot #'s UT917312B 21:51—Ex. 174 and 175;UT917312B 17:43—Ex. 176 and 177; and UT917312F 17:42). These particularexamples do not have a substantially cellulose free absorbent core asdefined herein.

Examples 179-183 are commercially available airfelt training pants soldby Kimberly-Clark Corporation under the trademark HUGGIES COOL ALERT(boy 4T/5T; bag count 19; Lot #'s BI910818B 23:42—Ex. 179 and 180;PA911418X 02:48—Ex. 181; and BI919918B 01:34—Ex. 182 and 183). Theseparticular examples do not have a substantially cellulose free absorbentcore as defined herein.

Examples 184-188 are commercially available airfelt training pants soldby The Procter & Gamble Company under the trademark PAMPERS EASY UPS(girl size 4; bag count 26; Lot #'s 9215U0175512:45; 9214U0175516:19—Ex.185-187; and 9214U175512:46).

Examples 189-193 are commercially available airfelt training pants soldby The Procter & Gamble Company under the trademark PAMPERS EASY UPS(girl size 5; bag count 23; Lot #'s 914U0112806:15; 9205U0175520:33; and918U0175517:44—Ex. 191-193).

Examples 194-198 are commercially available airfelt training pants soldby The Procter & Gamble Company under the trademark PAMPERS EASY UPS(boy size 4; bag count 26; Lot #'s 9109U01701R06:26—Ex. 194 and 195;9191U0175503:59—Ex. 196 and 197; and 9109U1701R06:25).

Examples 199-203 are commercially available airfelt training pants soldby The Procter & Gamble Company under the trademark PAMPERS EASY UPS(boy size 5; bag count 23; Lot #'s 9227U0175510:51—Ex. 199 and 200;9123U0175504:27; 9207U175519:34; and 9207U0175519:30).

Examples 204-208 are commercially available airfelt training pants soldby The Procter & Gamble Company under the trademark PAMPERS UNDERJAMS(girl size S/M; bag count 17; Lot #'s 9213U0112601:47—Ex. 204-207; and9156U0112600:34).

Examples 209-213 are commercially available airfelt training pants soldby The Procter & Gamble Company under the trademark PAMPERS UNDERJAMS(girl size L/XL; bag count 13; Lot #'s 9030U0112620:06; 9030U0112616:52;and 9136U0112600:40—Ex. 211-213).

Examples 214-218 are commercially available airfelt training pants soldby The Procter & Gamble Company under the trademark PAMPERS UNDERJAMS(boy size S/M; bag count 17; Lot #'s 9091U0112623:43; 9147U0112621:33;9212U0112618L54; and 9220U0112603:23—Ex. 217 and 218).

Test Methods

The test methods and apparatus described below may be useful in testingembodiments of the present disclosure:

Stiffness Test

The Stiffness Test is described in detail above.

In-Bag Stack Height

The In-Bag Stack Height is determined as follows:

Equipment

-   -   Universal Diaper Packaging Tester (UDPT) (Model# M-ROEL;        Machine# MK-1071), including a horizontal sliding plate        (horizontal plate that moves up and down in a vertical plane)        for adding weights. It is counter-balanced by a suspended weight        to assure that no downward force is added from the horizontal        sliding plate assembly to the diaper package at all times. The        UDPT is available from Matsushita Industry Co. LTD, 7-21-101,        Midorigaoka-cho, Ashiya-city, Hyogo JAPAN. Zip code: 659-0014.    -   A 850 g (±5 g) weight.        Definitions    -   As illustrated in FIG. 5 a, package width 108 is defined as the        maximum distance between the two highest bulging points along        the same compression stack axis 110 of a diaper package.    -   In-Bag Stack Height=(Package Width/Pad Count Per Stack)×10 pads        of diapers.        Apparatus Calibration    -   Pull down the horizontal sliding plate until its bottom touches        the tester base plate.    -   Set the digital meter located at the side of the horizontal        sliding scale to zero mark.    -   Raise the horizontal sliding plate away from the tester base        plate.        Test Procedure    -   Put one of the side panel of the diaper package along its width        standing at the center of the tester base plate. Make sure the        vertical sliding plate (vertical plate that moves left and right        in a horizontal plane) is pulled to the right so it does not        touch the package being tested.    -   Add the 850 g weight onto the vertical sliding plate.    -   Allow the horizontal sliding plate to slide down slowly until        its bottom lightly touches desired highest point of the package.    -   Measure the package width in mm (distance from the top of the        base plate to the top of the diaper package). Record the reading        that appears on the digital meter.    -   Remove the 850 g weight.    -   Raise the horizontal sliding plate away from the diaper package.    -   Remove the diaper package.        Calculation/Reporting    -   Calculate and report the “In-Bag Stack Height”=(Package        Width/Pad Count Per Stack)×10.    -   Report Sample Identification, i.e. complete description of        product being tested (product brand name/size).    -   Report the determined value for each width measurement to the        nearest 1 mm. At least five diaper packages having the same pad        count are measured in this manner for a given product and the        in-bag stack height values are aggregated to calculate an        average and standard deviation.    -   Report the Production Date of the measured package (taken from        package coding).    -   Report the Testing Date and Analytical Method used.        Folded Stack Length

The Folded Stack Length is determined as follows:

Equipment

-   -   Universal Diaper Packaging Tester (UDPT) (Model# M-ROEL;        Machine# MK-1071), including a horizontal sliding plate        (horizontal plate that moves up and down in a vertical plane)        for adding weights. It is counter-balanced by a suspended weight        to assure that no downward force is added from the horizontal        sliding plate assembly to the diaper package at all times. The        UDPT is available from Matsushita Industry Co. LTD, 7-21-101,        Midorigaoka-cho, Ashiya-city, Hyogo JAPAN. Zip code: 659-0014.    -   A 850 g (±5 g) weight.        Definitions    -   As illustrated in FIGS. 7 a and 7 b, pad nose 142 is the outer        pad folding of an absorbent article and pad tail 140 is the        outer endflap end of an absorbent article.    -   As further illustrated in FIGS. 7 a and 7 b, stack length is the        average folded pad length 144 of 10 pads of diapers.        Apparatus Calibration    -   Raise the horizontal sliding plate away from the tester base        plate to allow stacks of diapers to be placed on the tester base        plate.    -   Move the vertical sliding plate (vertical plate that moves left        and right in a horizontal plane) to the left until it touches        the vertical anchored plate.    -   Set the digital meter located on the side of the horizontal        sliding plate to the zero mark.    -   Move the vertical sliding plate to the right to allow stacks of        diapers to be placed on the tester base plate.        Stack Length

Preparation

-   -   Place 10 diapers individually on top of each other on the tester        base. For taped diapers, the landing zone side is upwards within        the UDPT. For pants, the front-side is upwards within the UDPT.    -   Place the stack of 10 diapers along the folded pad length        (“nose” facing vertical anchored plate) on the tester base, such        that good contact is achieved between the stack and the vertical        anchored plate.

Test Procedure

-   -   Add the 850 g weight onto the horizontal sliding plate.    -   Allow the horizontal sliding plate to slide down slowly until        its bottom lightly touches the stack of diapers. Release the        plate such that the plate comes to rest on the diaper stack.    -   Condition the stack under the weight for 15 seconds.    -   Move the vertical sliding plate towards the anchored vertical        plate until the plate touches the tail of the first pad. Stop        moving the vertical plate as soon as it gets in contact with the        tail of the first pad.    -   Record the reading that appears on the digital meter.    -   Remove the 850 g weight.    -   Raise the horizontal sliding plate away from the stack of        diapers.    -   Remove the stack of diapers.        Calculation/Reporting    -   Report the determined value for stack length. At least five        samples (5 diaper packages having the same pad count) are        measured in this manner for a given product and the folded stack        length values are aggregated to calculate an average and        standard deviation.    -   Report Sample Identification, i.e. complete description of        product being tested (product brand name/size).    -   Report the Production Date of the measured package (taken from        package coding).    -   Report the Testing Date and Analytical Method used.

The dimensions and values disclosed herein are not to be understood asbeing strictly limited to the exact numerical values recited. Instead,unless otherwise specified, each such dimension is intended to mean boththe recited value and a functionally equivalent range surrounding thatvalue. For example, a dimension disclosed as “40 mm” is intended to mean“about 40 mm”.

Every document cited herein, including any cross referenced or relatedpatent or application, is hereby incorporated herein by reference in itsentirety unless expressly excluded or otherwise limited. The citation ofany document is not an admission that it is prior art with respect toany invention disclosed or claimed herein or that it alone, or in anycombination with any other reference or references, teaches, suggests ordiscloses any such invention. Further, to the extent that any meaning ordefinition of a term in this document conflicts with any meaning ordefinition of the same term in a document incorporated by reference, themeaning or definition assigned to that term in this document shallgovern.

While particular embodiments of the present invention have beenillustrated and described, it would be obvious to those skilled in theart that various other changes and modifications can be made withoutdeparting from the spirit and scope of the invention. It is thereforeintended to cover in the appended claims all such changes andmodifications that are within the scope of this invention.

What is claimed is:
 1. An absorbent product comprising: a package havingheight, width and depth dimensions, an interior space and an exteriorsurface, the package comprising a film; a plurality of disposableabsorbent articles, which are bi-folded and arranged to form a stack ofdisposable absorbent articles, wherein the stack of disposable absorbentarticles is compressed along a compression axis and disposed within theinterior space of the package such that the compression axis of thestack of disposable absorbent articles is oriented substantially alongthe width dimension of the package, each of the folded disposableabsorbent articles comprising a topsheet, a liquid impervious backsheet,a substantially cellulose free absorbent core located between thetopsheet and the backsheet, a first waist region, a second waist region,and a crotch region extending longitudinally between the first andsecond waist regions, and a fastening member-adapted to releasablyconnect with a landing zone; wherein the backsheet comprises athermoplastic film having an inner facing surface and an outer facingsurface; wherein the substantially cellulose free absorbent corecomprises a nonwoven substrate having first and second surfaces, anabsorbent particulate polymer material disposed on the second surface ofthe nonwoven substrate and a thermoplastic composition applied to theabsorbent particulate material, wherein the first surface of thenonwoven substrate faces the inner facing surface of the thermoplasticfilm; wherein more than 60% of the absorbent particulate polymer isdisposed in a front half of each of the absorbent articles; wherein theabsorbent product exhibits an In-Bag Stack Height from 72 mm to 80 mmwherein the In-Bag Stack Height is the width of the package divided bythe number of the disposable articles per stack and then multiplied byten; wherein the disposable absorbent articles exhibit a longitudinalbending stiffness of less than 355 N/m upon removal from the package;and wherein the thermoplastic composition has a softening point in therange between 50° C. and 300° C.
 2. The absorbent product of claim 1,wherein the absorbent product exhibits an In-Bag Stack Height of from 74mm to 78 mm.
 3. The absorbent product of claim 1, wherein the absorbentcore consists essentially of first and second substrates, absorbentparticulate polymer material, and thermoplastic adhesive material. 4.The absorbent product of claim 3, wherein the absorbent particulatepolymer material is present in the absorbent core in an amount greaterthan 80% by weight of the absorbent core.
 5. The absorbent product ofclaim 1, wherein the disposable absorbent articles exhibit alongitudinal bending stiffness of less than 325 N/m upon removal fromthe package.
 6. The absorbent product of claim 1, wherein the disposableabsorbent articles exhibit a longitudinal bending stiffness of from 285N/m to less than 355 N/m upon removal from the package.
 7. The absorbentproduct of claim 6, wherein the disposable absorbent articles exhibit alongitudinal bending stiffness of from 295 N/m to 345 N/m upon removalfrom the package.
 8. The absorbent product of claim 1, wherein thedisposable absorbent articles further comprise an acquisition system. 9.The absorbent product of claim 1, wherein the backsheet has a thicknessof from 0.012 mm to 0.051 mm.
 10. The absorbent product of claim 1,wherein the disposable absorbent articles comprise an acquisitionsystem, wherein the acquisition system comprises the absorbent core incontact with an acquisition layer.
 11. The absorbent product of claim10, wherein the acquisition layer has a maximum uptake of 10 g/g. 12.The absorbent product of claim 11, wherein the acquisition layer has aminimum median desorption pressure (MDP) of greater than 5 cm.
 13. Theabsorbent product of claim 12, wherein the acquisition layer has amedian desorption pressure (MDP) of less than 20.5 cm.
 14. The absorbentproduct of claim 13, wherein the thermoplastic composition is applied tothe absorbent particulate polymer material forming a fibrous networkover the absorbent particulate polymer material.
 15. The absorbentproduct of claim 1, wherein a first portion of the absorbent particulatepolymer material is attached to a second nonwoven substrate.
 16. Theabsorbent product of claim 15, wherein the absorbent particulate polymermaterial of the nonwoven substrate and of the second nonwoven substrateis combined to form a substantially continuous layer of absorbentparticulate polymer material.
 17. The absorbent product of claim 1,wherein the absorbent core comprises an auxiliary adhesive in the formof a discontinuous field.
 18. The absorbent product of claim 1, whereinthe thermoplastic composition comprise at least one thermoplasticpolymer having a molecular weight of more than 10,000.
 19. The absorbentproduct of claim 18, wherein the thermoplastic polymer has a glasstransition temperature (Tg) in the range between −6° C. and 16° C. 20.The absorbent product of claim 19, wherein the thermoplastic polymermakes up from 20% to 40% of the thermoplastic composition by weight.